Aug. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Some residents of the corn and cattle town of Crawford, Texas, are expressing resentment as hundreds of anti-war protesters descend upon President George W. Bush's adopted hometown.

After nine days of watching as one woman's protest has grown into a national event, dozens of the farmers and ranchers neighboring Bush's 1,600-acre Prairie Chapel Ranch plan to petition a county court in nearby Waco tomorrow, according to one, Pete Martinka. They want to prevent anyone from parking or stopping within two miles of the makeshift campsite erected by Cindy Sheehan, a 48-year-old woman from Vacaville, California, whose son, Casey, was killed in the war in Iraq.

``She's pitching tents on private property,'' said Martinka, who lives on the 104-acre Lazy Czech Ranch near the Bush property. Erecting signs prohibiting stopping and parking would halt traffic jams on the narrow country road and would ``keep the riff-raff out of our hair.''

Sheehan has become an icon for a revived anti-war movement and her so-called Camp Casey outside the Bush ranch has become a small village. Her demonstration now includes a procession of television satellite trucks, political operatives and public relations professionals. There are rallies and folk songs.

``People are very fed up,'' said another neighbor, Sergeant Vernon Harrison, 42, a National Guard nurse who returned from Iraq in February.

Part of the dissatisfaction stems from the campsite becoming a magnet for other causes, such as anti-nuclear and anti-trade activists and efforts to promote recycling.

Face-to-Face Meeting

Sheehan's son Casey, 24, died in an ambush in Baghdad's Sadr City in April 2004. She said that she will stick with her vigil as long as Bush is at the ranch and still wants a face-to-face meeting with the president to seek answers about the war and demand that the 138,000 U.S. troops in Iraq be brought home.

The president sent two emissaries to meet with her last week but hasn't agreed to a new meeting with her. Bush met with Sheehan last year during a visit with relatives of soldiers killed in Iraq.

``All Bush has to do is meet with me and I'm gone,'' Sheehan said in an interview yesterday. ``If the neighbors are upset, they should urge Bush to talk to me. I'm still staying.''

Sheehan held a short prayer session this morning with those at the campsite, according to Lietta Ruger, a spokeswoman for Military Families Speak Out, one of the groups that have joined the camp. On Aug. 12, Sheehan invited neighbors to pray with the protesters, and ``that invitation extends to our neighbor down the road,'' said Ruger, referring to the president.

Bush remained secluded at his ranch yesterday and White House officials announced no schedule for the president the entire week, except for his routine national security briefings.

Political Dilemma

Sheehan's demands to see Bush create a political dilemma for the president, Larry Sabato, a political science professor at the University of Virginia, said in an e-mailed statement.

``If he meets with Ms. Sheehan, he elevates her protest and is unlikely to convince her of anything'' based on her past statements, Sabato said. ``If Bush continues to refuse to meet with her, he looks uncaring and disengaged.''

Lawmakers from both parties have suggested Bush meet with Sheehan. ``Perhaps it would be'' a good idea, Republican Senator Richard Lugar said on CNN's ``Late Edition'' program yesterday.

Low-key, anti-war events continued at Camp Casey, about a mile from the gates of the Bush ranch. Early yesterday, about the time a prayer service was to begin, a neighbor, sheep farmer Larry Mattlage, fired at least one shotgun blast into the air.

Hunting Season

Sheriff's deputies and the Secret Service rushed to the scene. Mattlage told authorities he was firing at doves, preparing for hunting season that begins Sept. 1 in Texas. He wasn't charged because he fired a gun on his private property, according to the McLennan County Sheriff's Department.

The White House had no comment and referred reporters to local law enforcement officials.

Mattlage declined to be interviewed yesterday afternoon. He told reporters earlier in the day he was getting tired of protesters and media driving and camping on private property, creating a nuisance and generating a traffic mess.

``When they first came out here, I was sympathetic to their cause,'' he told CNN. ``American citizens have a right to march, protest.'' Still, ``if you had your brother-in-law in your house after five days, wouldn't it start stinking after awhile? You'd really want them to go home, wouldn't you?''

NBC News has an agreement with Mattlage that allows its news crews access to his land to obtain long-range camera shots of the Bush ranch, said correspondent Kelly O'Donnell. The agreement, disclosed yesterday because Mattlage became a news figure, has been in place since Bush became president.

Few Near Scene

Only a few protesters were near the scene at the time of the shotgun blast, and few were even aware of it. Alexander Ellison, 40, a stay-at-home mom from Minneapolis, did hear it.

``I was very concerned,'' she said. ``I have a child with me,'' referring to Ella, age 3. ``We've made ourselves a bit of a target.''

Kenneth Jones of the Crawford city police said firing a gun in the countryside is commonplace, and it shouldn't surprise or frighten anyone. Hunting season's coming up and guns are part of the culture in Texas, Jones said.

``This is still redneck country,'' he said.

To contact the reporters on this story: Roger Runningen in Crawford, Texas at rrunningen@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: August 15, 2005 16:38 EDT